Wordsworth Trust Internship

The Wordsworth Trust in Grasmere, England, is one of Britain’s premier scholarly archives and literary treasures. Located in the heart of England’s Lake District, the trust includes Dove Cottage, the legendary home of William and Dorothy Wordsworth; the Wordsworth Museum, which specializes in the region’s art, history, and culture; and the Jerwood Centre, a research library that houses most of the Wordsworths’ surviving manuscripts and a world-class collection of Romantic-era books, paintings, and drawings. Since 2014 the trust has offered fourteen-week, unpaid internships to four BYU undergraduates per year, providing training in curating rare books and manuscripts, conducting tours of Dove Cottage, and working in visitor services at the museum and gift shop. When not interning at the trust, students complete reading and writing assignments for their BYU internship courses, hike the Lake District’s famous fells and vales, and, time and funds allowing, take weekend trips to London, Edinburgh, Manchester, and cities on the continent. As a result, students emerge from this internship with a deep understanding of Romantic-era literature, history, and culture; extensive skills in archival methods and museology; twelve BYU credit hours, six of which can fulfill English-major requirements; and an eye-catching resume line for employment and graduate-school applications.

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QUALIFICATIONS

The Wordsworth Trust Internship is run by BYU’s English Department in cooperation with the Lee Library’s Department of Special Collections. In a typical year, three interns will be English majors and the fourth a library student employee intent on pursuing a career in library, museum, or curatorial sciences. Strong candidates from English are generally juniors and seniors with a 3.7 GPA or higher, enthusiastic recommendations from their literature professors, and extensive training in British literature (ENGL 291 and 292 required, ENGL 374 highly preferred). Since this is primarily an academic internship, the best English major candidates tend to be preparing for graduate work in British literature, preferably in eighteenth-century, Romantic, or Victorian studies.

Candidates for the HBLL’s one internship per year are generally juniors and seniors with a 3.7 GPA or higher in a relevant major (e.g., English, Humanities, history, art history, European Studies, etc.), a year of work experience at the library (preferably in Special Collections), basic familiarity with British literature (especially the Romantic period), and career plans in the fields of library science or museum studies.

All interns must have strong speaking and writing skills, an ability to work well with others, the self-assurance to be the only Latter-day Saint and likely the only American on staff, and the maturity and dependability to preserve BYU’s strong relationship with the trust.

DATES

Internships generally last 14 weeks and correspond roughly with BYU’s academic calendar. Winter interns usually go from mid-January through late April, Spring/Summer interns from early May through mid-August, and Fall interns from late August through early December.

HOUSING

The trust has reserved a private, furnished bedroom for BYU interns in a house directly across from Dove Cottage. Interns share a bathroom and kitchen facilities with trainees and researchers from other British and North American institutions.

COST

$2,730–3,230

This cost includes LDS undergraduate tuition, housing, insurance, and visa. It does not include BUNAC sponsorship ($755), airfare, meals, travel expenses, or personal expenses. Accompanying spouses who are not full program participants should consult with ISP about securing international health insurance, taking BYU credits, and participating in security briefings and internship prep courses.

FUNDING SOURCES

Although this is an unpaid internship, resourceful students can often find ways to make this extremely affordable. University, departmental, and private scholarships, as well as federal financial aid (such as Pell Grants and Stafford loans) may be applied toward the program’s cost. English majors are eligible to receive up to $2,000 in internship stipends from the College of Humanities but must complete the HCOLL 396R (Internship Preparation) course to qualify. HBLL interns receive a $2,000 library scholarship to help pay their expenses. Other potential funding sources include experiential education stipends from students’ major or minor, $1,500 ORCA grants from BYU, Richard Wordsworth Memorial Fund scholarships from the English Department, Global Opportunity Scholarships from the Kennedy Center, and thesis funding from Honors.

COURSE CREDIT AND PRE-DEPARTURE TRAINING

Interns receive 12 credit hours during the fall and winter semester, or 6 credit hours during spring term and 6 credit hours during summer term for a total of 12 credit hours combined. English majors generally earn 9 credit hours of ENGL 399R (3 of which can fulfill the major’s English-Plus requirement) and 3 of ENGL 384 (which fulfills the Major Authors requirement). Non-English majors should work with their department’s internship advisor to arrange credits and coursework. Accepted students will be asked to complete a curatorial internship in the HBLL’s Special Collections prior to leaving for England. Depending on the schedules of students and the supervising librarians, this internship can range in time from two weeks to an entire semester. Accepted English majors should plan to take HCOLL 396R during the second block of the semester prior to their internship.

APPLICATION PROCESS AND DEADLINES

Given the highly selective nature of this internship, spots are filled as qualified applicants come forward rather than after any particular deadlines. Therefore, as early as a year before their prospective internship start date, interested students should arrange to meet with one of the faculty coordinators listed below to determine if they are a good match for this program. Students who subsequently decide to pursue the internship should submit the following to either one of the faculty coordinators: 1) names and contact info for two literature professors and at least one former employer; 2) a copy of their best paper from a literature course; 3) a brief paragraph explaining how this internship will prepare them for their future career; 4) a brief paragraph explaining why they are interested in an internship focused on the Wordsworths and Romantic-era literature, history, or art; 5) 2 or 3 sentences explaining what, if any, complicating factors might possibly keep them from completing this internship were it offered to them. A faculty committee will review these materials and determine whether to nominate the student. If nominated, students must then complete an ISP application (which includes a $35 processing fee) and work with the faculty coordinators to prepare a formal application letter and CV for the trust. Soon after receiving the student’s formal application, the trust will arrange a Skype interview. Provided that goes well, the trust will soon issue a formal offer, at which point the internship will be official and the student may begin making travel plans.

While the faculty coordinators and ISP will provide logistical and academic supervision, no BYU faculty member will be on site during students’ internships. Interns’ primary supervisor will therefore be Jeff Cowton, the trust’s head curator.

PROGRAM ADJUSTMENTS

ISP reserves the right to cancel this program, revise its offerings, or make any adjustments to the preliminary cost estimates due to conditions beyond its control.